Fifa

22.03.16

Praline designs a new identity for the international football federation, whose brand has been tarnished in recent years by allegations of corruption

The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (Fifa) has been through the mill recently – scandals and allegations of corruption have forced us to question our trust in the organisation and doubt that is has the best interests of sport at heart.

Founded in Paris in 1904, and now based in Zurich, Fifa has 209 national associations as members. The organisation has been the topic of conversation over lunch in our studio for the past year, in particular discussing its outdated brand and how perfectly this captures the kind of organisation Fifa is currently perceived as – untrustworthy and corporate.

We believe Fifa’s original mission was positive and ambitious, and that it would still benefit the game if were to be followed today. Fifa’s roots are in the development of the game around the world, at every level, and for everyone. We wanted this to become a new mantra, and be at the forefront of their communication at all times.

If the organisation is to reinvent itself, then a new identity is needed to make its mission clearer and its identity more human. As we looked at the idea of rebranding Fifa, we decided that the most important element was to focus on the communication of its new self, its message, its mission and core values – being open, honest and transparent, for the fans, players, cultures and nations.

We believe FIFA’s original mission was positive and ambitious, and that it would still benefit the game if were to be followed today

In order to do this we felt its name had to change. We’re not sure exactly when the Fédération Internationale de Football Association became known by the acronym Fifa, but we believe this acronym is no longer connected in people’s minds with the full title – it has sadly become a shorthand for such flawed figures as Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini. How many people around the world know what those four letters actually stand for?

We decided to create a replacement name, "Football is for all", that retains the famous acronym, building something new out of the old, something clean and pure. The result is a clear idea that takes Fifa’s original objectives and expresses them in a fresh way, using a name that is flexible and ownable by all. The brand design is the result of expressing this idea – a flexible language rather than a corporate and opaque logo.